The Chevrolet Chevelle Is Back

Production of the Camaro ended two years ago. Chevy still makes the Corvette, but the latest edition takes the guise of a svelte mid-engine sports car, rather than a boulevard bruiser.The brand has not announced any plans to introduce a new competitor for the Ford Mustang and Dodge Charger, but one company has revived the greatest Chevy muscle car of them all for customers looking for that classic style.The 1970 Chevelle SS is the car that most likely pops in your head when someone says “muscle car.” The hulking coupe’s burly body is iconic, and its 450 hp V8 was the most powerful engine in the world when it was new.It was a short-lived model that arrived just before emissions standards and fuel shortages kicked off Detroit’s so-called “malaise era” of less exciting vehicles, fossilizing it as one of the all-time greats. Well-preserved surviving examples often sell for $200,000 and more today, but many are treated like keepsakes rather than cars meant to be driven.0/SS customers order cars designed to look like original Chevelles that they own. Trans Am WorldwideThis is where Trans Am Worldwide comes in. The Tallahassee-based custom car shop has made a name for itself over the past decade by converting modern Camaros into dopplegangers for the Firebird Trans Am, years after Pontiac went defunct.It was a relatively simple, if not easy, task, as the factory Camaros and Firebird Trans Ams had always been two versions of the same vehicle. The finished products were so convincing that you could easily be fooled into thinking they were built by General Motors. Trans Am Worldwide’s latest offering took a little more effort.This time around, it has transformed the Camaro into a fresh take on the Chevelle that it calls the 70/SS. It is not an exact copy, but a reinterpretation on the smaller scale of the sixth-generation (2016-2024) Camaro’s platform.“We originally started with the computer-aided design data from General Motors and, in the computer, we were able to take it apart,” Trans Am Worldwide co-founder Tod Warmack said. “Then we fashioned and designed our body panels to look like the 1970 Chevelle, and from that we made molds for a complete carbon fiber body.”Trans Am Worldwide builds the 70/SS as a convertible with a removable hardtop. Trans Am WorldwideThe only untouched exterior components left from the Camaro are the windshield and the A-pillars that frame it. The hood, fenders and rear fascia are fully redesigned, and the upright front end equipped with four round headlights, a grille and a chrome bumper.Trans Am Worldwide uses convertible Camaros as the base, which simplified the hardtop roof’s redesign, but it is lightweight and removable. Mr. Warmack said the rear glass weighs more than the rest of the roof.It takes roughly 1,400 hours of work to finish each car, but it is not limited to the styling. Several engine options are offered, which range from a naturally aspirated 455-horsepower V8 to a twin-turbocharged engine that cranks out 1,500 horsepower. The drivetrain and suspension are also updated to accommodate the increased performance.The visual giveaway to the car’s origins is its interior, which remains largely the same as the stock Camaro’s. Trans Am Worldwide adds some unique trim and a white cue ball-style shifter, but a Camaro owner would feel right at home.The 70/SS interior retains the Camaro’s styling and features. Trans Am WorldwideUnfortunately, the 70/SS doesn’t provide the kind of cheap speed that the 1970 Chevelle once did. Prices start at $180,000 and can rise far higher, depending on what the customer requests.“They are a combination of people who always wanted one back in the day, but never had one, and now they have the means to buy one, or they want to add it to a collection,” Mr. Warmack said.“A lot of the Chevelles that we are building right now are lookalikes to an original. So a customer has one and wants a newer version of the one they have.”Trans Am Worldwide has sold dozens of them and has many more on order, but there is a limit. With the Camaro out of production, it’s becoming increasingly difficult to find new donor cars for the builds, so the 70/SS will join its forebear in the history books one day soon.

The Chevrolet Chevelle Is Back

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